"I think I've died and gone to heaven," Meredith giggled, looking at the entry to the gym with a devilish grin. Following her gaze, I couldn't help but smile. There was Kirill, and as promised he'd brought friends.
"Which ones are single?" I whispered to Sonya who was making shy eyes at Kirill.
"Hmm?" she replied distractedly. "Um – all of them, I think? Come on, I'll introduce you."
"Which one do you like?" I whispered to Meredith.
"I'm not sure - I'm only looking..."
Obediently Meredith and I followed Sonya across to the group of handsome young Dhampir men standing in the doorway. Kirill wasted no time in greeting Sonya, and from the way the other guys looked at her, or more to the point didn't, he'd obviously told them of his interest. But if their actions were anything to go by, Meredith and I were considered fair game. They certainly didn't hold back from admiring us in our training gear.
We were surrounded by some eight young men in their early twenties, Sonya off to the side talking quietly to Kirill, when I felt the mood of the group change. Without even looking up I knew Dimitri must have approached – the young men acting the same way Novices at St. Vlad's would when my Russian God was close by. Sure enough, I caught a whiff of his aftershave and seconds later his strong arms wrapped around my waist from behind, pulling me tight against his body and wordlessly claiming me as his. He dropped a seemingly casual kiss into my hair to underscore the point.
"I see you have met the female Novices from St. Vladimir's," he said in his melodious voice. "This is Eddie Castile, also visiting from there."
Eddie gave the guys a friendly grin.
"How does today work?" one of the guys asked, eyeing the tables being set up ready to hold the salads Olena had insisted on providing.
"First you fight one of my Novices or my little sister, and then you get to enjoy beer and food."
"What happens if we hurt one of them?" one of the unpromised Dhampir asked arrogantly. "They look a little delicate to me."
"Normal fight rules," Dimitri said, impassively. "No intentional hits to the face and no other illegal moves. Beyond that, go for it."
"Point sparring or with a stake?"
"Whichever you rather. We have practice stakes here if you want to use one."
"Do we get to choose which one we fight?" another young man asked, eyeing up Meredith hopefully. While not exactly encouraging him, she didn't discourage his interest, either. As soon as Dimitri had wrapped his arms around me, all the young men's interest in myself stopped.
"No. But we'll be doing another three or four of these, so you'll get a chance to fight each of them if you wish."
"What do we get if we win?" the same guy asked.
"Beer and dinner," Dimitri replied.
"And if we don't win? What do we get then?"
"Beer and dinner!" Kirill laughed, coming over to say hello, Sonya beside him. While not exactly joined at the hip, they were both smiling and looking happy. Dimitri had let go of me to shake Kirill's hand again, and I noticed his satisfied expression when he saw the respectful, attentive way Kirill was attending to Sonya. Maybe something would develop there!
We stood around chatting for another twenty minutes, and then Dimitri declared it was time to fight. Clapping his hands to call everyone to attention, he explained there would be four simultaneous fights and when each ended, those of us fighting would have five minutes to recover and get feedback, and then we'd start our next fight.
Dimitri, Pavel and Abe's Guardians Kirk and Swift would be adjudicating the sparring and giving feedback and pointers to us after each. My handsome Guardian boyfriend stressed the point of these fights were for us to learn to fight people with different fighting styles, so was quick to point out other than the well-known illegal moves, pretty much anything went. He then invited the Dhampir to line up.
"You and Eddie go before me," Meredith hissed, noticing the guy who'd been making eyes at her third in line. I shrugged in acquiescence. I'd already be going home with the guy I wanted to be getting hot and sweaty with!
Vika looked as though she were absolutely shitting herself. She was the year below Meredith, Eddie and me, but Dimitri was right. This was a great opportunity for her to practice, and she'd get a lot of useful feedback.
My first competitor was an unpromised Dhampir only a year or so older than me. Not one of the guys from Kirill's group, he introduced himself as Boris. I introduced myself, and we shook hands.
"Sparring or stakes?" I asked. I don't think his English was great, but I got the idea when he picked up a practice stake and passed it to me, keeping one for himself.
"I want you to take your time and get a sense of his fighting style if you can," Pavel advised. "It's rare to be able to take out a Strigoi straight up, so learning to read the way your opponent fights is a useful skill."
I nodded, hearing the wisdom in his words. The guy had more molnija than any Guardian I'd ever met. If he said I needed to know this, I'd focus on learning it!
I stepped into the sparring square, rolling my shoulders in preparation. My eyes met Dimitri's where he stood ready to supervise Eddie's match. He gave me a smoldering look, and then it was time to fight.
Boris and I circled each other, waiting for the other to make a move. He tried a kick that I dodged, I tried a couple of punches to see how he'd handle them. Given he was unpromised, I'd expected Boris to be slow and perhaps even a little out of practice – but he was fast enough even if his moves lacked the precision I was used to. And if his lack of precision and method was his downfall it was also his strength. He was more unpredictable than a lot of other people I fought, and he used street moves I didn't know. While I could have taken him out in the first few minutes, Pavel was right – I was learning more by giving him a bit of time to show his moves. And I was also conscious that if I slayed the first guy in under a minute, people would be less willing to fight against us and let us practice.
Once I felt I had a handle on his overall style, I started my counter maneuvers, never deviating from the standard arms and legs technique drilled into us at the Academy. But then I tried a couple of his street moves against him. I was slower and clumsier than I was when using my well-honed moves – I guess there was something to be said for muscle memory – but since I was in a safe environment I figured it wouldn't hurt to give them a go.
Unsurprisingly, Boris was adept at defending against his own moves, but that was educative, too. Generally, if you knew how to make a move, you knew how to deflect it, also. So as well as learning new techniques, I was learning defense.
We kept fighting. I was able to evade most of his hits, and while I got a few in on him, I was hardly trying my hardest. I wonder whether he was?
Finally deciding I'd learned enough I launched into an aerial, deftly kicking him in the solar plexus and dropping him to the ground. Before he'd even hit the ground, I was in position to land on top of him, straddling him with a knee on either side of his chest. We fell basically as one, and I positioned my stake. He hit the mat and lightly rebounded – up and straight into the blunted tip of my wooden practice stake. Had it been a real fight with a real stake, he would have been dead.
I climbed off him immediately, holding my hand out to help him up. He accepted with a smile and in his broken English complimented me on the win.
"No – thank you," I said genuinely. "I learned heaps, and if you're ever in the gym, I'd love to learn some of your fight moves."
I was careful to make sure he understood I was only interested in fighting techniques. Sonya had warned Meredith and me that as the 'new girls in town' Moroi and Dhampir men alike would be interested in us. I wasn't too worried about Moroi – we'd only seen a few in passing – but I didn't want there to be any confusion that I was spoken for by Dimitri.
Boris and I shook hands, and I had a quick discussion with Pavel about his technique and what I'd learned. While I was having a drink from my water bottle, I could see Olena, Karolina, and Sonya setting out salads as well as glasses for the beer. Abe was there, too – supervising the first of the platters of meats and other foods being set out on the long trestle tables.
Eddie had just finished his fight, but Meredith and Viktoria were still going with theirs. I gave my love a tender grin, wiped my hands on my workout pants and stood up, nodding to Pavel to invite the next competitor to step forward.
My second fight went much like the first. Delay, look, learn, make a note of anything I could incorporate into my own fighting and then finish.
By the time I was ready for my third opponent, Dimitri had switched with Pavel and came across to supervise my next match. I looked at the line and appreciated I'd be fighting Kirill.
"He's not a bad fighter – at least he didn't use to be…"
I flicked my eyes across to where Sonya was meant to be helping serve the food and salads, but her attention was fixed on the young man I was about to fight. Peering up at my own man, I thought he wanted to say something but was unsure of how to phrase it.
"It might not be wise if you were to win every fight…" he started.
"And it might be a bit embarrassing for a guy if he was flattened by the young woman staying at his girlfriend's house?" I surmised, giving him a knowing smile.
"Well, I'm not sure she's his girlfriend yet…"
Dimitri didn't refute the rest of my statement, so I gave him a grin. Unless Kirill were absolutely hopeless, I'd tank the fight. Dimitri was right – I didn't need to win every fight, and it wouldn't hurt for Kirill to be the winner in front of such an appreciative audience!
We did our handshake and bows, Kirill also electing to fight with practice stakes. My pride was assuaged – Kirill was still a decent fighter. In fact, he snuck in a couple of blows even when I was trying to deflect them. I'd be tired by the time I got through the five or six fights I'd have today, and I'd be bruised, too.
My eyes flicked to Dimitri's, silently asking him whether I'd put up enough of a showing against the young man who was so interested in his sister. An almost imperceptible nod from my Russian God and I set about trying to give Kirill openings to take me down without it being obvious I was letting him win. I'd given the guy about four openings, and he hadn't used any of them. I was starting to wonder whether I needed to trip over my own feet to give him a chance when he got me to the mat with an unexpected double kick. Once there he fake staked me, earning cheers from his mates.
I accepted his hand up with a smile, congratulating him on his victory and asking him whether he'd show me the double kick next time he was at the gym. He readily agreed before heading across to the trestle tables to claim a glass of beer from a glowing Sonya.
"That was a nice thing you did," Dimitri complimented me, pulling me against him even though I was all hot and sweaty.
"He's a nice guy, and Sonya seems very into him," I murmured, tilting my face up to him for a kiss.
"Not as much as I'm into you," he declared, kissing me with complete disregard for who could see. Actually if anything I think he wanted everyone to see.
"Are you staking your claim, Guardian Belikov?" I teased.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he growled, pulling me even tighter against him.
After six fights, two losses four wins, Dimitri declared it a day, letting Viktoria, Eddie, Meredith and me get ourselves some food and a beer. I'd forgotten the legal drinking age in Russia was eighteen, so it was with great pleasure I grabbed myself a cold beer. Not that I think they were too hung up on drinking age laws; Viktoria was pretty openly sipping a beer, too!
"Did you learn much?" Abe asked coming over to say hello. He had been about to put his arm around me, but the sweat covering my body seemed to put him off.
"Heaps, actually. Even the guys I beat had moves I haven't seen before! I've got a list of new moves to learn and figure out how to defend against. Thanks so much for all this," I said gesturing to the forty or so people milling around eating and drinking. "I know it can't be cheap to do everything you're doing for us."
Abe looked amused.
"Rose I mean it when I say it's nothing."
"Still – you didn't have to. You've already done so much…"
"It's my pleasure, gülüm."
"Gülüm?" I repeated curiously, butchering the pronunciation.
"It's Turkish. It means 'my rose'" he said a little bashfully.
Now normally I'd rip someone's guts out for calling me 'their rose,' but from Abe it was ok. He was, after all, my Dad!
"Oh my God! Of course! You speak Turkish! What other languages do you speak?" I demanded gleefully.
"Turkish is my native language, although I speak Russian and English more often now. I can also speak French and German fluently, and I can get my point across in a handful of other languages."
"Can you teach me how to swear? In Turkish? And Russian, too? Dimitri refuses to teach me…"
Abe gave me a wide grin, his eyes twinkling wickedly.
"Sure. What's the first thing you want to learn?" he asked.
"Hmm, can you teach me how to say something really naughty?! What about…"
We were all tired by the time we made it back to the Belikov's house. We'd said goodbye to Abe and his Guardians at the gym, and then we'd all walked to the Belikov home, Kirill escorting a rather tired Sonya.
"We'll get you home, and then I can set you up with a cup of tea and the footspa I gave your Babushka," he tempted. "A sit down is just what you need!"
"That's very sweet of you, Kirill," she simpered as they walked, Viktoria making gagging gestures behind their backs, stopping only when she got a pointed glare from Dimitri.
"Not at all. Growing a baby is a very tiring thing for a woman. You deserve to be pampered and looked after."
Karolina and Olena gave each other pleased looks as they walked to one side. The afternoon had been success all around. We met with Yeva back at the house. She'd come down for a little while to watch the sparring but had got a lift back home earlier with Zoya and Paul.
"Put those salad bowls in the kitchen, I will wash them."
"It's alright Babushka, we'll do them," Dimitri offered.
"Nonsense! Look at your Novices – they are exhausted. It will be a busy day tomorrow; you all need to relax," she stressed.
Dimitri looked at the five or six salad bowls, his grandmother's determined expression, then to where I stood almost dead on my feet. Standing beside me, Eddie and Meredith were little better.
"Thanks, Babushka," he conceded. "You're right. Roza? Why don't we go get cleaned up and have an early night?"
"That sounds perfect to me!" I declared. "There's a shower with my name on it!" I joked, looking at my sweaty workout gear.
"I'll use the other bathroom upstairs, then I'm heading to bed too," Viktoria declared after getting a meaningful look from her mother.
"Eddie? You use the one down here first if you want?" Meredith offered. "After, I thought I might have a bath if no one minds?"
That settled, we said our goodnights, leaving Kirill setting Sonya up with a cup of tea and the footspa in the living room. Babushka went to the kitchen to wash the salad bowls, and Olena announced she needed a lie-down. It was a very obvious ruse to give the young couple some privacy, but no one seemed to care.
"Do you think he's going to kiss her tonight?" I whispered excitedly to Dimitri once we were in our room.
"He'd better. We've all cleared off to give them their space," he grumbled.
"What? You'd rather watch Russian sitcoms on TV with your sister and the guy she likes than shower and have an early night with me?" I tempted, slowly peeling off my clothes and putting them in the hamper. Finally completely nude I wrapped a towel around me and streaked next door to the bathroom. A moment later Dimitri followed, also naked bar a towel around his hips preserving his modesty.
"So did you learn much today?" he asked as I hung my towel on a hook by the door, standing naked in front of the bathroom cabinet as I located my shampoo and conditioner.
"Hmm… I learned heaps," I said, climbing into the shower stall beneath the blissfully hot water. I'd set the temperature quite high – just what I needed after an afternoon spent fighting.
"I have a list of moves I want to work on, and I know the others do, too."
"That's good," Dimitri replied distractedly, watching me as I quickly shampooed my sweaty hair. It was limp and smelled bad, so it was a relief to work the scented suds through my long locks.
I grinned as I noticed Dimitri turn around to lock the bathroom door. Not that anyone was likely to interrupt us; only Viktoria used this second bathroom upstairs, and she'd already said she'd use the one Karo and Sonya shared. But if Dimitri was locking the door, I knew it was because he didn't want us to be interrupted.
He hung his own towel beside mine, standing naked watching me shower. I could see his cock was erect, proudly standing to attention amid the patch of dark curls at the top of my love's muscled thighs. Noticing my carnal gaze, he casually wrapped his hand around himself, slowly working it up and down his length as he watched me coyly soap my breasts. I looked him deep in the eyes as I started circling the areola with my fingertips, letting out little sighs.
"So aren't you going to ask what else I learned today?" I taunted, tweaking my nipples as the warm water ran in rivulets over my bosom and downward to other pleasurable places.
"What did you learn, Roza?" Dimitri asked, his voice low and gravely, eyes hooded. I saw his hand increasing in pace as he watched me watching him.
"I started to learn some Russian," I groaned, pleasure and longing starting to rise within me.
"Hmm? So what can you say?" he mumbled.
"I learned a few things," I admitted. "But right now that phrase that springs to mind is Трахни меня!"